My Hero
by xXxRainbowxXxStarxXx
Summary: "Hero was a hero, whether it was by some great act, a comforting hug, or just several whispered words of wisdom.." Two best friends living through hell and high water, just trying to make it home alive.
1. Chapter 1

My Hero

I don't own Brothers in Arms, nor do I own Paddock (who's amazing) or any other character in the Brothers in Arms series, I just own Hero, Sophie and their friends. No copyright infringment intended!

* * *

Hero. She was true to her name. 5"7, dirty red hair, big boobs (and boy do I mean **big**), blue eyes. wherever she went, laughter followed. My best friend was a Hero.

* * *

"Hey Sarge, where d'you think we're going?" BlackJack asked me, as he lazily kicked my feet. He was 6"2, a boxer, and was constantly covered in thick, black oil, as the tank was always breaking down, though the tank wouldn't be with us until we got to Carentan..Well you can't drop it out of a plane can you?

"We're going to Carentan." I replied, looking around for land marks or something to help us on our way.

"Right..."

I rolled my eyes, wishing he didn't want an explanation as to where it was in respect to our position. I waved my arms, in a general 'that way' gesture to my left, "It's here in France. Ask Frenchy, he lived next to the Goddam place."

As I looked as my best friend, BlackJack 'trammed off' as she would say. Hero, the lanky goof-ball, was perched on a tree root, back against the trunk. I could see, almost hidden under the helmet was her smirking face.

"What's so funny?"

"Am I laughing?" she questioned innocently, pushing her helmet back so she could see.

"No, but you've got it written all over your face."

"So? Got a problem with that, Six Foot Fucker?" I pretended to be mad at her, but the smile on my face was something I couldn't hide. My being six foot tall, led to some lovely comments from Hero (I say that with sarcasm dripping out of my eye balls). Still, it was better than not being around her.

"I may have 99 problems Titzilla, but you are not one."

Hero just laughed and rose to her feet, dusting off the dirt from the back of her od's.

"You think it's time to get going again?"

I looked at my watch; 1500 hours.

"Yeah..Okay guys, get your gear, we're moving our asses out!" I called to the squad. We'd been recuperating for around 10 minutes so that we could get our gear in check, and sort out minor wounds or injuries we'd sustained over the day.

There were a few groans from some of the guys, they hated moving out when we'd just got settled, but we'd got no choice. It's what we'd all signed up for. Somewhere up in front, I could hear Hero's Dorothy Gale impression, but I couldn't quite catch what she was saying. I shook my head, made sure it was more or less safe to move my squad out and went on our hardly merry way.


	2. The Past Is Always Present

The Past Is Always Present.

this is from Paddock's point of view, a few days before D-Day.

_Mrs Drake, **Sophie,**_Hero.

* * *

June 1st, 1944.

I hated waiting, I was always an impatient kid. In just a few day's time, we'd be in Normandy, kicking Hitler's ass all the way back to Berlin. But that was still a few days away and I was getting bored of listening to all the lectures we were made to attend.

I was sat, less than comfortably, on a rickity old camp bed in our tent. I was sharing with Dean Winchell who everyone called Friar, Sam Corrion, Tom Zanovitch, Stephan Obrieski and Jack Courtland. All said men were playing cards in the middle of the tent, aside from Corrion, who was writing a letter in the corner, with Matt Baker, when Red came waltzing in.

I wasn't paying any attention to anyone at that point in time, I was just trying for some sleep.

"What about you Frank?"

My head snapped up from the floor as I heard someone say my name.

"Huh?"

"I said when was the last time you had a girlfriend?" Red asked me with a creepy smile on his face.

I thought for a while. I'd had plenty of dames in my time, but I wouldn't say any of them were worth the title of girlfriend.

"I dunno, '40? She wasn't exactly girlfriend material though." I replied, standing up and stretching my legs.

"You're one to talk Kansas boy." Friar commented, as the mail came to our tent.

Each of us got a letter.

"Who's yours from?" Red asked. I had no idea my self.

"I'll find out soon enough."

_Dear Franklin,_

_You may be wondering why I'm writing you. Well honey, your father isn't going to do it, even though he misses you something awful, though he won't admit it. He just sits on the front porch, like he's waiting on you to come home from ploughing our field. Poor man looks utterly lost with out you._

I knew who this was after she said that. Old Mrs Drake live on a farm around 3 miles from the farm I lived on, and when that son of a bitch I call my dad didn't need me, I'd go help her and her husband.

_Well, that's not the only reason. You remember my grand-daughter, Sophie? And her friend Hero? I should think you'd remember her, you were always ogling at her when you were a youngster. Shame you two never got courting, the fights you two could have had with your father would have been spectacular.  
_

I couldn't help but smile at that, she was an eccentric old woman, but always knew what was going on with other people.

_Well, not long after you left, they did too. They saw an ad in the local store, asking for female and male volunteers for a special company. Needless to say, it was the only thing Sophie could do to stop that poor little Jewish girl pining her life away...I'm not talking about you two dear, so stop looking over my shoulder! Oh goodness now look what you made me write!_

It was at this point, that some of the writing went squiggly and changed into someone else's.

_FRANKLIN ALAN PADDOCK! I have never pined over you in my LIFE! That silly old woman is trying to marry us off again, it's getting rediculous._

_**So just marry each other then and she'll drop it!**  
_

_Sophie! I am not marrying any one, especially Fran.  
_

_**You're back to pet names Hero.**  
_

_Shut up! All I wanted to say, is that she's talking bollocks again. I just thought I'd clear that up. _

_Good, now can you two silly girls stop ruining this letter!_

I laughed and turned the page over.

"What you laughing at?" Sam asked, smirking at me.

"Just some old friends. My neighbour wrote me and they took over the letter."

"Can we read it?" Friar questioned, trying to peek over my shoulder.

"Hey, why don't you get your own letter small fry?" I retorted as I went back to reading it.

_Now dear I began writing this God forsaken letter in 1942, but I've never got round to finishing it. As I said, the girls left and were on a weeks holiday when they wrote that part. They're in England now, so if you see them, be sure to say hello. They would have written you, but apparently the CO is abominable and won't let them write men. Well, Hero has found a way around this, but I myself just got the letter. I would have sent it sooner, but it's better late then never, no?_

_It's very lonely around here, with out you three causing chaos like you usually do in the summer holidays. Even your father has been to the house. He comes once every week and we all have cake and tea or coffee, like the three of you used to do. And we sit and talk about you all. We want you all to come home safe and sound. Hero is from England, so where ever she goes, she's quite close to home, you and Sophie however, are from Kansas and you're a whole world away. So, young man, you come home to your father in one piece.  
_

_We all miss you,  
_

_Love Mrs Drake, Sophie's crazy grand-mother.  
_

It was then, that I truly felt home sick. My dad was an asshole, we always argued, but it was nice to know that he cared. Even if he didn't actually admit it.

"So what's she say?" Sam interrogated me again.

"Well, apparently my dad misses me, which is a goddamn shock. They miss me. And uh..apparently, I'm being pined for."

"By her?"

"No you idiot! By my friend. That's all you small fry's are getting out of me anyway."

"But you got another letter there."

"Yeah I have, you ain't reading it though Old Man." I told Zano, putting the two letters into the top pocket of my uniform, as I stepped out through the tent flap.

"Aww don't be a spoilsport Paddock!" Friar called after me.

* * *

I decided to read Hero's letter in my own company. Hell I didn't want any of those ass holes looking at my private letters. So I found my self a nice little spot, behind some crates and began to read the other letter.

_Dear Fran,_

_God it's been a long time since I saw you. As you probably know, Soph and I took off after you went. Well it was boring with out you with me...I mean, with me to make me laugh when you messed around. What can I say, I miss you Kansas boy.  
_

_I doubt you'd recognize me if you saw me now Fran. I grew! I'm now, 5 feet 7 inches! I'm not the scrawny little girl you used to stick up for any more. Those sons of bitches who bullied me before would be quaking in their boots if they saw me coming down the street now.  
_

_Anyway, I heard you were in England now too. So how do you like the shitty weather? Fan-fucking-tastic isn't it? I always sit there and think why I didn't join the Nurse Core, but then I remember I have no bedside manner so it wouldn't have worked out really.  
_

_So, anyway, how are you doing? You still being an ass with everyone you meet? Or has the army calmed your hot head down? I don't want you running off into the danger zone all by your self, like you usually do Fran, you'll get hurt or worse, killed. And I need you back home, to protect me from Sophie, she's six foot now. She'd crush me... Or make me clean the loos for the rest of the war, seeing as she ranks me (I'm a Private First Class and she's a 1st Sergeant).  
_

_You just make sure you get home in one piece and alive, okay?  
_

_Lots of Love,  
_

_Hero...and also Sophie  
_

_**P.S Hero really is pining for you.  
**_

_****P.S.S No I'm not.  
_

__I smiled at the letter, hearing from Hero made my day. She and Sophie were my two best friends, they were the only two patient enough, to stay through my moods. They were the only two people who didn't piss me off and were nice to me actually. Everyone else thought I was an asshole.


	3. We're All Just Chalk Lines

We're All Just Chalk Lines On The Pavement Of Life

* * *

We trudged through the once beautiful country side of France, searching for anyone from our company. We were gradually picking up stragglers from our squad, most from other platoons, but there were still less than 20 of us in total, 17 of us to be exact. And half of us were missing most of our equipment. This included Hero, who was one of our machine gunners. Her machine gun had been ripped off, as had almost everyone's leg bag, during the drop and so she had to make do with my .45, while I found spare ammo, and rifles from the dead.

It was heart wrenching really. To know that, while you had made it through the drop, and the first few hours, these men who you were passing, either strung up in a tree or laid out in the field, would never have another day on this earth. They wouldn't see the beauty of the world, or their family or friends. They wouldn't laugh, or love. They were gone, and they were gone for good. And no amount of grief or indeed more death, could ever rectify that.

We advanced further to our objective, a sudden and unwanted smell hit us.

It was disgusting, though luckily, most of us had a strong stomach and just about kept ourselves from throwing up, our Medic, Taffy, was one of the unfortunates. He emptied his stomach contents out on to the winding dirt path beneath our feet. Hero jumped back a foot in annoyance and disgust.

"Watch my boots Taff!" she yelped, narrowly avoiding sick on her boots.

"Sorry." He mumbled quietly, as he wiped the vomit from round his mouth.

Looking up, I saw a pillar of black smoke, which I knew was remnants of a fire. Maybe a crashed plane was causing the nauseating smell. The squad moved closer to the vile stench, the weak stomached trying hard to contain the contents of their bellies.

Behind a hedge, we discovered the plane I had surmised was causing the smell. I nodded at Hero, who made her way, slowly and carefully to the burnt out shell of the C-47.

Touching it lightly with the back of her hand, she hissed softly at me, "Still warm." On my command, she entered the plane.

"Oh shit." came a resounding sigh.

"What's wrong?" Frenchy asked, looking up as she came past him, back to me.

"Lieutenant Jones and Havisham are dead. As is Sergeant Collins, Arkwright, Connery and Barr. 1st squad has lost almost half it's NCO's and CO's." she groaned, miserably.

At that moment, all 17 of us trigger happy squaddies, realized that we were indeed, just chalk lines on the ground. We are born to be washed away. But we also realized how lucky we actually were. We were alive, blood was pumping through us, our hearts still beating and we weren't seriously injured. If we made it through today, we could make it through any day.

* * *

By the time we got to any kind of civilization, it was 0600 hours. I saw a small barn, a fire or some kind of light inside and some voices.

We cautiously approached, in case it was a kraut aid-station. Then someone spotted us.

"Flash!" the voice hissed at us.

"Thunder!" I called back, relieved it was the American's we'd found and not the Germans. I came out and signaled for the rest of the squad to do so too. The soldier who'd called out to me, roamed over to our shambolic group.

"Hey there, for a minute, I thought you guys were Krauts." He smiled at me.

"Hey! My mother's German!" Hero complained in offense.

"Oh er, sorry..."

My best friend simply grunted in acknowledgement, and wandered into the barn with a pout on her face.

"Ignore her, she doesn't mind, she's just tired, like the rest of us. I'm 1st Sergeant Sophie Drake of 1st squad, Tallahassee Company. And some of my squad...Most of them are from 2nd squad." I introduced myself and the rest of the group.

"I'm Corporal Seamus Doyle, 82nd. We're all along way off...I've been tagging along with some guys from the 502nd...They're around here somewhere...Lieutenant Colonel Cassidy is inside too, so you should go talk to him."

"502nd? Isn't there objective Carentan?" I asked, looking around the barn.

"Yeah, like I said we're all aways off."

"My squads are supposed to be heading to Carentan too..We'll just have to tag along with them." I thought aloud.

Hopefully, we'd all make it to our objective.


	4. When We Two Parted

When We Two Parted.

_When we two parted_  
_In silence and tears,_  
_Half broken-hearted,_  
_To sever for years,_  
_Pale grew thy cheek and cold,_  
_Colder thy kiss;_  
_Truly that hour foretold_  
_Sorrow to this._

_Lord Byron, When We Two Parted.  
_

* * *

Hero

I was exhausted by the time we all got to the crappy little barn in the middle of the French country side. I was ratty too, and when that idiot started going on about Krauts, seeing as I'm half German, I got a little offended..Well at least I didn't rip his head off...I just mooched off towards the barn.

When I got there, I found a sad sight. There were a couple of men, propped up or laid on the floor, severely or mildly wounded. I sighed in melancholy. There were no supplies in the barn, without them, some wouldn't make it through the night.

One man, he couldn't have been older than I was, was spread out on the floor in front of the fire, sometimes reaching out for comfort. None of his friends could move closer to him, seeing as they were wounded too, there was just Lieutenant Colonel Cassidy, sat on some empty crates next to the door, looking depressed and stressed about the poor men.

I took off my helmet, letting some of my hair fall out of it's place, also noticing that the man I had passed as I came in, had followed me into the barn. I ignored him, I didn't recognize him.

Instead, I sat by the wounded soldier laid by the fire.

"Ma'am, would you please take my helmet off? It's awful uncomfortable." he whispered hoarsely to me.

"Of course I will...what's you're name?"

"Harry, ma'am, Harry Redhill."

"Well Harry, I'm Hero Durante."

Taking off his helmet, I smiled as warmly as I could at him, trying to make him feel as comfortable as possible. There were no empty morphine syrets on him, so I asked . Cassidy.

"No, he hasn't had any. Most o'these boys lost their aid-kits in the jump."

I nodded, giving the soldier my syrett out of my aid kit. I patted his hand, to reassure him, trying to make him understand that he would be okay, without words, I knew I'd choke up if I spoke.

"I heard there was a make shift Kraut aid-station round here, in a church." Cassidy told me. I winced as he said kraut, but I thought it would be best not to tell him my mother was a German woman. I sighed, looking over my shoulder at him and the soldier who'd followed me in from outside.

"Sir, almost all of my squad is missing. There's 3 men from my original squad, the others are from 2nd. Some of them are wounded too, we're all missing something important, for me it's my machine gun and rations. There's no way we can take a church full of German soldiers. We're all banged up, Hell even one of them is missing one of his fingers...Or maybe two..." I told him, sticking the syrett into one of the wounded soldier's lapels.

Cassidy nodded. I glanced at the soldier from outside. He was strangely familiar, and in all this chaos around us, he seemed at ease, like he belonged in the thick of it.

Another soldier, at this point had stood up from the corner of the room, as my lot entered, with two corporals. I didn't pay much attention to them, I just carried on looking after the poor guy laid by the warmth of the fire. I didn't even notice that they'd gone until Sophie came up to me and put her hand on my shoulder.

"Hey." She sighed softly, smiling kindly at me.

"Hi." I smiled drowsily back.

"You should rest up Titzilla, Taffy and I will look after him."

I frowned, but couldn't argue, even though I wanted to, even though I wanted to make sure, if the others came back with supplies, he would be patched up. I yawned sub-consciously, as I moved to somewhere out of the way.

"His name's Harry by the way."

* * *

Sitting with Harry had made me think. I thought about the way I'd parted with one of my best friends. Franklin Alan Paddock. It wasn't just Harry that made me think about him, it was the other soldier, the one who'd followed me inside the barn. He looked like him a little.

I'd not seen the farm boy for two years, since he'd decided to join up without thinking about anyone who cared about him. I was mad at him, hurt that he'd jump to the chance to possibly die in a foreign country, for the people in his own country, without talking to any body about it first. At least when Soph and I left, we discussed it with our families first.

Frank just told us the day before he left. Truth was I did pine for him, for a few weeks...Actually, I lie...I never stopped pining for him, but I didn't want to give him the satisfaction of knowing that. It'd go to his head, making his already massive ego, bigger.

But I knew, if he wouldn't write me before we left for France, and he died there, the depressing parting we had, would be the last thing either of us would remember of the other, so I wrote him, throwing my pride right down the loo. He never wrote back, so I assumed he was mad at me or just hadn't got it. Didn't stop me pining.

As I closed my eyes, I thought about all the good times we'd had in the summer; the water fights, the birthday parties, the all out verbal (and the occasional physical) fights Frank and I had...I wasn't a child anymore. There would be no more child like fun to be had after what I'd seen and been through today...And I was sure Frank would be the same.


	5. Don't I Know You?

Don't I Know You?

obviously I dont own brothers in arms, or any characters apart from hero and sophie and the rest of their gang, nor do i own any poetry or songs featured in here. the poem below i got from the poetry showcase. no copy right intended

* * *

_Why do we have to be apart  
If we belong together in heart?  
Funny how life shifts things around  
The one who loves you is your rebound  
The one you love is a star and you're on the ground  
Your heart was once precious and now it's not found_

Paddock.

Those damn girls! How the Hell can they manage to find me, in the middle of a fucking war, in the middle of fucking France? Out of all the places they could have been sent, they were sent to France, to go to Carentan...Which was exactly where my unit was going...Well we would be if we didn't keep getting told to do something else instead of finding the rest of the company.

The thing is, those Goddam girls didn't recognize me...Hell Hero didn't even notice me...I won't lie, I did miss her, to tell the truth, I was kind of pining for her too, but I ain't about to admit that to anyone I knew, Red would probably tell her...

Still it was wonderful to see my childhood best friends again. When you don't see someone for years, you kind of wish they were there, or you forget about them...I tried to forget about them at first, but gradually, I just began to wish they were with me.

I just had to try to not piss Sophie off. She was a good 2 inches taller than me, and could have easily broken my jaw...Like she did when we were kids, cause I was making fun of Hero being tiny...She's my size now...And drop dead gorgeous...

So any way, Red, Friar and a couple of guys from Sophie's squad and me, made our way to the Church, where the Kraut aid-station was. The plan was to go there, kick some Jerry ass, get the medical supplies they needed, come back with them, then go and find the rest of the company, or Matt Baker. And that's just what we did...Only I didn't expect those two goons to come with us.

"Hey, Red, thanks for going to all this trouble to get these supplies." Doyle said to Red, patting his shoulder as he came and met the 5 of us. I stretched, looking down the road at nothing.

"It's not a problem. You saved my ass, I was returning the favor." Red smiled to him. Red smiled alot. My guess was, that he was trying to make up for Baker looking miserable all the damn time.

"You know," Doyle began, looking at the guys from Sophie's rabble, "Your sergeant and her friend are really something. They've been sat with my friends for hours, making sure they're okay. I'm sure they'll all appreciate it."

"Yeah, they're like that." I muttered to myself. Sometimes, people just made it out like there were no good people left in the world.

"How do you know that?" Red questioned, scrunching up his forehead.

"Uhhhh...How do I know what?"

"What those two girls are like." He repeated.

"I grew up with them...But we fell out 'cause I took off without a weeks notice...Sides now those ass holes don't recognize me."

"They'll figure it out." BlackJack, one of Sophie and Hero's friends reassured me.

"And eef not, ah will tell zem." Frenchy told me in his thick French accent. He was from the town right next door to our objective, so he knew the way there like the back of his hand.

* * *

I yawned as we made our way back to the aid-station. I was so Goddam tired, I could have slept for years. I began thinking about how I could try to get Goon's one and two to recognize me, but after half an hour I gave up...I guess when I start thinking about one thing, it leads to one hundred other things and most of those things I would have rather not thought about...It was one of the reasons I was usually the only one up real late at night, 'cause I just start thinking about all the dumb stuff I've said and done.

Slinging my rifle over my shoulders, I started to crack my knuckles, one by one.

"You'll get arthritis doing that." Sophie scolded me. I smirked and looked up.

"Oh leave the poor man alone Soph', let him crack his knuckles." Hero in turn, scolded her best friend, beginning to crack her knuckles too.

"Fine, but don't complain to me when you can't move your fingers!"

"The only thing I'm going to complain to you about, is the increase in the levels of my sexual frustration. 1942! The last time I got laid, was nineteen forty fucking two."

"Is that even a year?" BlackJack joked from beside me.

"Shut your ugly trap BlackJack! You'd be mad about it too!"

BlackJack just shrugged and traipsed off to talk to Doyle.

"He's such an ass!"

"So are you." Sophie interjected.

"You're an even bigger ass than I am!"

"You've still got the big ass though."

"That maybe, but I am PROUD of my curves! You're just jealous 'cause you look like a 6 foot tall man."

Sophie just stood there with a slacked mouth sort of grin on her face, before she hit her friend up side the head, telling her how much of a bitch she was. Hero, as usual, looked like she could care less. She, like BlackJack, just shrugged. Sophie, who was understandably annoyed, stomped off into the barn.

"You know, she's the second one to just go off in a mood." Hero told me, as she came closer. I raised an eye-brow.

"Who was the other one?" I asked, looking at her all changed. It was like she was band new.

"A friend of mine, Franklin...We argued because he told us he was leaving the night before he left..He ended up stomping off in a mood just like she has...I wrote him too...He never wrote me back..." she looked sad as she told me the last part; she looked at the floor, a little misery just visible in her brilliant eyes.

I studied her face for a moment.

"Well, this Franklin...uhh why did he leave?"

"To join the paratroopers.."

"Well...he may have told you the night before he left because he knew if he told you earlier, you'd be real upset about it...He was probably doing it because he cared about both of you."

Hero and I were silent for a few moments, and then she asked, "How come you seem to know about this thing?"

"Well, I've been in the same situation...Anyway, you never know, he could be closer than you think, he could be in France too."

I was sure she was just about to ask me what my name was, before Sophie called her away, though she did smile at me and say that it was nice talking to me. I heard the two talking, but I couldn't hear exactly what was said.

Had something to do with Red, 'cause they shouted him over to them after a few minutes. And I guess it's why they were sat in this small hamlet with us just a few hours later.

* * *

"Ladies just can't get enough of us guys." Larry Allen joked to his best friend, Micheal Garnett.

"Sure we can't..." Sophie muttered under her breath in total sarcasm.

"See? What did I tell you?"

"You're encouraging them!...Dumme schlampe..." Hero sighed, lightly smacking Sophie upside the head.

"What was that?" Keven Leggett asked from a couple of feet away from me. Hero looked up from the grass, looking at me, then at Legs.

He looked at her with contempt in his glass shielded eyes. The moustached man was a pain in the ass, but there was no need to start on Hero, she was a total stranger to him.

"What was what?" She asked, again looking at me with a frown.

"Why were you talking German?" He growled at my childhood friend.

Her eyes widened in realization, but she looked awkward almost instantly after. She chose to look at the grass instead, deciding it looked better than Legs...In my opinion anything looked better than that jerk.

"Because..."

"You're a kraut."

Now my head snapped up. Ho boy, he sure knew how to piss me off, that scrawny son of a bitch.

"What'chu say to her?" I knew what he'd said, I just wanted to see if he said it to my face.

"I said she's a kraut. Why else would she speak German?" He spat.

"Maybe, because my mother is a German-Jewish refugee who took off from Germany when the Nazi's started all their bullshit about us being parasites, du verdammter arschficker."

"Goddam, watch you're mouth!" Sophie hissed.

"Why is my mother here?"

"And we all wonder why you aren't married." BlackJack told her, nudging me with a smile on his face. I smirked, though it didn't go unnoticed.

"The fuck are you smirking at Farm Boy?"

"Leggett, you'll shut up or your teeth'll be saying 'howdy' to yer tonsils!" I grunted at him with a glare.

"Fuck you Paddock! You're just saying that because you think you'll get laid-"

"I said shut your fucking mouth you son of a bitch! Goddam you're such an asshole!"

Sophie and Hero looked at me with surprise. I grinned and waved a little.

"Sam, Desola, you're with me." Matt announced.

"Great."

"Not now Sam!" he scolded Sam Corrion like a kid, funny how he was actually older than Matt.

"Yeah, not now Sam!" I joked. I saw Hero's lips form a smile.

Matt then turned to me. "You get to babysit these two."

"Aw shit." Allen groaned.

"You're mouth is too big! Every day I say it, you're mouth is too damn big, you could fit a bass in there!" Garnett ranted at him.

Meanwhile Matt had turned to Hero, "You don't mind going with them? You seem like you have your head screwed on tighter than those two anyway."

Her mouth flapped open and shut, looking at her best friend, to me, and finally to Matt.

"I guess not...Well, Sophie, nice knowing you all these years."

"Don't sound overly positive, wischer."

"Ach mein gott! You said a naughty word! I'm telling on you!" She winked, moving over to me, Friar, Allen'n'Garnett and Red.

"No one dies to day!" Matt's voice broke through my head again.

"Well that's good news...Oh shit I did it again!"

* * *

**Sorry if these swears offend any one!  
**

**wischer-wanker**

**ach mein gott-oh my God  
**

**du verdammter arschficker-you damn arsefucker  
**

**dumme schlampe-stupid bitch  
**


	6. Loosing You Already

Loosing You Already

* * *

Paddock

"Franklin Alan Paddock you absolute, total motherfucking kackbratze! It was you, all along, and you didn't tell me? I haven't seen you for 2 years schweinenpriester! You could have said, 'Hey Hero, remember me? Frank?' But no!"

I just laughed and gave her a one armed hug.

"So, is this the broad who was pining for you?" Red winked at Hero.

The girl went bright red, like tomato, and looked away.

"That crazy old lady, she's always saying some bollocks. I haven't been pining for anyone, she makes it up!"

"Wasn't Mr Deathwish pining for someone too?" Allen asked.

"I don't pine asshole, 'specially over my best friend. Have to admit, was kinda quiet without you around."

"So that's why you always had that picture with you." Red egged.

"What? What picture? He's got a picture?"

"Of you, it's a very nice picture too if I may say so too. Keeps it in his helmet and hasn't let anyone else even hold the damn thing." That ginger fuck-wit was going to get me into no end of trouble.

"Where did you get a picture of me from?"

"Uhh...I borrowed it..."

"You're a terrible liar Frank...I want it back."

"Why?"

"What do you mean 'why' 'cause it's a picture of me and I want it back, giftzahn." She pouted, jutting her bottom lip out in a way that had always caught my attention. Damn thing was still catching my attention. I started to chew my lip, anything to keep my mind off of my even more attractive friend.

Damn that girl had changed. She was taller, but I knew that from the letter. Her hair was long and had some flicks and cow licks from the sweat, and it was also a couple of shades lighter. Her face looked a little more mature, but still had the faint collection of freckles across the bridge of her nose and cheeks. And, even with all that shit she was lugging around, you could still see all her perfect curves.

* * *

Hero.

As we turned a corner, I came face to face with a German soldier. He just stood there, looking at me, and I just stood there, looking back at him. I couldn't think what to do, we just stood there staring at each other for what seemed like an eternity, before his eyes began to roll backwards into his head. It was that moment, that it got through my head, the young 'Aryan' man stood before me, had been shot dead by one of my companions.

In fact, Frank and Friar were still stood, looking down the sights of their weapons, when I looked around at them. When I turned it felt like slow motion. I could feel the wind tugging the wisps of hair that had fallen out of place, as Frank grabbed my arm and pulled me to cover behind a wall.

Then it all came back up to speed.

"What the hell were you doing?" He yelled at me, over the sound of bullets ricocheting around us.

"I don't know, he caught me by surprise." I called back.

"You ain't gonna be so lucky next time!"

"I know!" I yelled back, ducking back behind the wall, narrowly missing a bullet. "You hardly need to tell me that!"

"I thought at least you'd be able to look after yourself now!"

"PADDOCK THIS IS NOT THE TIME!" Red yelled, "Shift your fire over there!Now, move it double time!"

* * *

Friar

"It ain't my fault some crazy girl came with us and almost got her goddam self killed!"

"Crazy? I'm crazy? You're the one with the death wish you cretin!"

"Cretin! At least I can look after myself!"

"You've almost been shot 5 times while we've been here! And before that too!"

"And?"

"So it's perfectly fine for you to get killed, but not me?"

"Where did you even get that from?"

Christ the pair of them sounded married. I looked at Allen'n'Garnett, and they looked at me, just as confused, shocked and amused as I was. Frank Paddock, the grumpiest hot head, who'd not look out of place in the middle of a bar-room brawl, was almost matched with this girl. It was like he was trying to get out of a locked box, fighting with her.

And, even by the time we'd all regrouped, they were still carrying on the fight.

"Well you seem to care more about me breathing than yourself."

"It's not that! I'd never hear the end of it if you kicked the bucket!"

"So you don't actually care about me?"

"Aww Hell! Hero, now you're just making stuff up!"

"I am not! If you cared, you'd have at least told me sooner that you were leaving!" murmured Hero, so softly, i barely even heard her, and I was almost slap-bang next to her.

Her face hardened, while Farm Boy's softened. I pretended not to listen to the now hushed conversation. Up ahead, Sophie was finishing a conversation with Matt and preparing to move them all out, but giving her squad time to rest.

"Hero, what difference would it have made? I would have left anyway, regardless when I told you..."

I swear, on my heart, I had never heard Paddock sound more caring then he was at that moment...Well not until Holland, but that's later on...

"I told you to be patient, that I'd come back, I came back before right?"

"This isn't the same! It's not like when you had to go home to your dad at the end of the day, or the few times you ran away! There's a 70% chance you weren't coming home! You and Sophie are my two best friends! Fuck, you didn't even bother to write me and you could have been killed today...That could have been our last conversation!"

"I thought you were mad at me!" Paddock hissed.

"I was mad at you! You still could have written to at least one of us!"

"So could you! You didn't think I wanted _you_ to write _me_? Damn, and you wonder why I left? I can't do anything right for you or my dad! I was glad to go!"

Great. That idiot could ruin anything.

"Frank..."

"Wasn't the same without you two goof-balls. If I could have taken you with me, I would have...C'mere you idiot. I jus' don't want you getting hurt is all...Think of what it'd do to Sophie. You two were born a couple of months apart, you're like twins, anything happens to you while I'm there and she's not, it'll be on my head."

"I'm not a kid anymore. I can hold my own, Sophie knows that..." She muttered to me as she passed by. I guessed she knew I'd been listening.

Just as she was leaving, there was an almighty crack and everyone threw themselves down on the floor. That is, all of us except one of Sergeant Drake's squad. He just stood there, unmoved by the sickening crack.

"Charlie get down!" Drake screamed at him, but he didn't seem to hear.

"Soph'..." Hero uttered quietly.

And then he fell. First he dropped to his knees, and then he fell forward, his head landing just in front of Hero. There was a huge hole in his helmet and blood poured out, slowly, like red cream. Drake just stared at Hero, she stared back. Then the sergeant gulped, and scanned the hedge line to see if she could spot whoever shot their friend.

Apparently she did see something.

"Hero, take Charlie's rifle and scope and climb to the top of that tree," she ordered, pointing to the tree in the field behind us. "Once you get there, look to my left, you'll see camouflage, I think he's in there somewhere! Take that schwuler out! We'll cover you until you get in the tree!"

"Wilko!"

Hero took the scope, quickly attaching it to the rifle. She hopped on to her heels, while the rest of her squad took up positions to cover her. A nod was all it took for the girl to be pelting to the tree behind Sam and Matt, climbing it like a monkey, rifle still slung over her shoulder. A couple more minutes later, and it was still silent.

And then another gun shot, but this time, it wasn't Jerry. The sniper fell out of his camouflage in the hedge row and all was silent again. Drake took some of her men to check out where he had fell. When she gave the all clear and began to walk back to us, we all stood up.

"Nice shot 'Ro. Straight down the scope." She said, without a smile. She didn't come close to us 502nders, instead, she walked right past us, her squad and the body of their friend and sat far away, with her head in her hands.

"She okay?" Zano asked from me left.

"No, she and Charlie had a thing...she didn't mention it much...I'll go talk to her." Hero told him.

Paddock sighed and sat down on the grass next to me.

"She'll pull through, Sophie always has done." he said to Red as he ran a hand through his hair, when he asked him if she'd be okay.

"She's got a good friend to help her." Zano commented, watching the pair. What was that old dog up to?

"She's off limits." Paddock replied gruffly, his head whipping up as soon as the words came out of Zano's mouth.

"Why?"

"Because she is."

Obi, who was sat across from me, exchanged a glance with me. We decided not to get into the middle of the dispute about to happen, but we'd jump in if it got..heated.

"You two have a thing?"

"No-"

"So why's she off limits?"

"Because I said so and if I see you trying it on with her, there'll be hell." Growled the Southern soldier.

Zano just smirked, which he only did to wind the poor guy up. Yes I said poor guy; I did actually feel sorry for him, it was like he was invisible to her and apparently they were the closest of childhood friends. We all knew something was going on, well we're not blind, and now Zano wanted to try it on with Hero...It didn't seem like the best idea.

The 3 of us watched as he got up and mooched over to an approaching Hero, anxious to see if his friend was alright. I saw Hero nod and hug him, something was definitely going on, as her arm lingered on his when she let go and his arms stayed on her hips for a moment, before they moved away awkwardly.


	7. You And Your Big Mouth

**You And Your Big Mouth**

* * *

It was the night of D-Day+2, and I was picked to check the perimeter with Zano and Frank. Lucky me.

It was silent, drizzly and a little cold to say it was June.

Now, I was on point, Paddock to the right, Zano to my left. Zano, was 29 and had been in the French Foreign Legion before he'd joined up for this, only he never told anyone.

So, really, he should have known to whisper or not open his mouth at all. The Austro-Hungarian did neither of these things.

"So, I've been told that you two had a thing when you were younger." He randomly spewed out. I looked across at Frank, Frank looked at me and we didn't say anything.

"It's true isn't it? Ahh I can tell by the looks on your faces. What happened?"

"It was aways back Zano, it doesn't matter any more." I didn't even realize that those words had come out of my mouth at the time, I wasn't really paying attention. But it wasn't a complete lie, I mean, it was a while ago...but it still mattered to me.

"So now you want to admit it?" Frank moaned at me, annoyed as usual.

I rolled my eyes, inwardly cursing myself for even opening my mouth.

"Frank, it was a long time ago, we've moved on."

"So why admit it now?"

"Because it doesn't upset me that we aren't seeing each other any more."

Before anyone had time to say anything else, I felt a thump, followed by a warm, stickiness running down my right arm, and, as I looked down, I saw my sleeve had a rather large hole in it, towards the far right of my arm, through the tissue and muscle not the bone.

But I'd never been hit before, so the first thing I did was just to stare at the gaping hole in my arm. The next thing I did was to poke it, well kids do it too when they find something they don't understand. Then I dropped to the floor, as Frank ran off to find the guys who shot me, while Zano stayed with me, patching me up.

* * *

"So, you were upset?" He asked me nonchalantly, as he helped me take my jacket off to wrap the bandage around my arm.

"Yes, but not any more."

"Hah, now here's what I think," he chuckled, "I think you are still upset."

"That's stupid, it was so long ago, we were about 15 and it was for a few weeks...Anyway, why are you so intrigued about us?" I questioned, as the man wrapped the bandage around my upper arm.

"It's not the two of you I'm interested in. Just you."

I blushed just as Frank came back. He looked down at me, over Zano's shoulder, chewing on his bottom lip and grinding his teeth together, as was one of Frank's many habits when stressed or concerned.

"How you feelin'?" He whispered, worry tingeing his voice, "I couldn't find the bastards who shot you, but I did take some pot shots."

Trying to smile, weakly albeit, Zano turned to him and sent him off to get a medic and someone to take me back to an aid-station.

"Can you make it any more obvious that you want to get rid of him?" I groaned, as the older man tightened the bandage around my arm.

"Well would he be impressed if I was flirting with his ex-girlfriend?"

"I'm not his ex-girlfriend," I corrected with a frown, "It was a little game of kiss chase that got carried away, that's it. And anyway-"

"Where's the casualty?" I heard Taffy ask from a few feet away.

"I'm over here! You're favourite casualty of them all Taffy dearest!" I grinned, feeling a little happier from the morphine (A God send if you ask me..Which you don't, but I, like many of my female friends are very opinionated and don't really care what anyone else thinks..Much)

O' morphine, beloved pain-relief of the severely pained and occasionally maimed. A medic and patient's best friend, how do I love thee!

"Uhh...Hero, are you, erm..Are you okay? You seem a little spaced out..." Frank quizzed as I stood, almost falling back down.

"I'm absolutely _fine_ thank you Franky. I hope they don't send me home, 'cause I have to look after your old man. Plus my mum is trying to set me up with some guy."

* * *

Frank.

"What?"

"What?"

I could feel my mouth flap open and shut, my brain, trying to compute what I'd just heard and make an answer, but no words would come. I felt sick to the pit of my stomach.

"You're mother's trying to set you up with someone?"

She nodded frantically, "But I don't want to set up home, well not with him anyway, he's a right jerk, always complaining about everything, I can't do right for doing wrong. It's my mum who wants me to get shackled to him for the rest of my life. 'Any man vill do, as long as his job is gutt und he looks decent' that's what she told me and when I complained she said 'Vell, this is as good as it is going to get seeing as you can't have Frank.' The cheek!"

Hero paused to throw up, well she never was good with pain medication. It either sent her nuts, or made her blow chunks...I guessed it was both tonight.

"Wait, wait...Hero, what do you mean?"

"About my mum? She just thinks I have my hopes pinned on Frank and I haven't really...Well I did, when I was younger, but we fell out so she's been giving me grief for the past 2 years. 'Get married, have kids, I vant grandchildren soon you know'... Well they aint going to be pretty children I can tell you, the man looks like his face and bum have been swapped round...If I have his baby, I'm going to be bringing up a bum-faced child."

I snorted with laughter. Ever the nice one Hero was.

"It's not funny! Get me out of this shitty mess!" She whined, as Taffy sorted the bandage on her arm out.

"What shitty mess? Being lost in the middle of Normandy, being shot in the middle of Normandy or being told you've gotta get hitched to some asshole?" Zano asked her, leaning against a nearby tree.

"You know what I mean!" Then she turned back to me, "Fran, please, pleeease help me."

"What do you want me to do? Marry you so it's gets them both off your back?"

"Not a bad plan..."

"You're serious?" Zano choked.

"Why not?"

"OKAY, I think we should get you to an aid station!" Taffy interjected, sensing my discomfort.

* * *

I came in to check on her the next day, but she was already up.

"I am so sorry!" she babbled, before I could even say anything.

"Uh.. don't worry about it small fry.."

"But I am! It was so embarrassing!"

"Look 'Ro, there aint anything to worry about."

"Did I do anything else?"

"Ask Zano.. he brought you here.." I said, a little more moodily than I should have.

"I like you."

"What?"

We blinked, and she went lobster red.

"Nothing."

"You like me?"

"Nope.. never said that."

"Yes you did, you just said it, you said 'I like you.'"

"You just said you like me." she teased, sticking her tongue out at me. I rolled my eyes.

"I was quoting what you said."

"You said you like me!" she teased even more, in a sing song voice.

"Did they give you more morphine?"

"...Yes, just before you came in..."

I rolled my eyes at the impossible woman in front of me.

"But I am telling the truth.. I missed you...for a Jewish girl to be pining over a non-Jewish guy, you gotta be pretty special.." she mumbled, fiddling with the blanket that covered her legs. She looked up at me, from under her eye lashes, and I sighed, running a hand through my hair.

"I missed you too Hero."

"And so you should have." she said, crossing her arms as best she could and nodding. Her long, dirty red hair fell into her face and eyes. She blew it out with a small huff, but it still fell back into her eyes.

"Use your arms, jackass." I grinned, pushing it out of the way for her. I saw her blush a little, and her head snapped to the other direction. I just smiled, ruffling her hair as I stood.

"I better get back."


End file.
